‘My plan was to live here forever’: Couple loses their Altadena ‘paradise’ to Eaton fire
Chelsea Bayouth looks over what was once her 3 year-old daughters room after the home her and husband Tommy Keiser (not pictured) had been living in for four years was destroyed along East Harriet St. during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)
Husband and wife Tommy Keiser and Chelsea Bayouth stand in front of their home of four years that was destroyed along East Harriet St. during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)
Chelsea Bayouth looks for anything that was left after the home her and husband Tommy Keiser (not pictured) had been living in for four years was destroyed along East Harriet St. during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)
Chelsea Bayouth collects dishes that survived after the home her and husband Tommy Keiser (not pictured) had been living in for four years was destroyed along East Harriet St. during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)
Chelsea Bayouth looks for anything that was left after the home her and husband Tommy Keiser (not pictured) had been living in for four years was destroyed along East Harriet St. during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)
Chelsea Bayouth looks for anything that was left after the home her and husband Tommy Keiser (not pictured) had been living in for four years was destroyed along East Harriet St. during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)
Chelsea Bayouth holds a few of her 3 year-old daughters dishes that survived after the home her and husband Tommy Keiser (not pictured) had been living in for four years was destroyed along East Harriet St. during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)
Husband and wife Tommy Keiser and Chelsea Bayouth show a picture of what their home looked like before being destroyed along East Harriet St. during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)
Tommy Keiser breaks down talking about his home that was destroyed along East Harriet St. saying “I hoped to live here forever” during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)
Chelsea Bayouth looks over what was once her 3 year-old daughters room after the home her and husband Tommy Keiser (not pictured) had been living in for four years was destroyed along East Harriet St. during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)
Husband and wife Tommy Keiser and Chelsea Bayouth comfort each other after their home of four years was destroyed along East Harriet St. during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)
Chelsea Bayouth looks over what was once her 3 year-old daughters room after the home her and husband Tommy Keiser (not pictured) had been living in for four years was destroyed along East Harriet St. during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)
Chelsea Bayouth looks over a few of her home made pottery that was left after her home was destroyed along East Harriet St. during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)
Chelsea Bayouth looks over a few of her home made pottery that survived after her home was destroyed along East Harriet St. Chelsea said “this was Paradise” during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)
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Chelsea Bayouth looks over what was once her 3 year-old daughters room after the home her and husband Tommy Keiser (not pictured) had been living in for four years was destroyed along East Harriet St. during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)
Tommy Keiser, 41, and Chelsea Bayouth, 38, carefully sifted Saturday through the blackened remains of what had been their rented home near East Harriet Street and North Raymond Avenue in Altadena, searching for anything salvageable after the Eaton fire tore through the community days earlier.
“My plan was to live here forever,” Keiser said.
The couple moved to Altadena in 2020, seeking a peaceful escape from the intensity of pandemic life in Los Feliz. Within a year, their daughter Valentine was born, and life began to take shape in a way they had only dreamed of.
Altadena felt like home in every sense. They found themselves in a close-knit, vibrant neighborhood surrounded by friendly faces — Chris across the street, A.B. and Birdie next door, and Mariana and her son just down the way.
One of the biggest milestones was getting their daughter into a nearby daycare school, something they had to wait an entire year for. “We fought so hard to get my daughter into a school,” Keiser said. “She was at a daycare that we didn’t love, and then she got in, we just had the most amazing growth of community because of this school.”
Tommy Keiser breaks down talking about his home that was destroyed along East Harriet St. saying “I hoped to live here forever” during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)
“This was paradise,” Bayouth added, standing in what was once her daughter’s room, now reduced to ash and debris.
Everything seemed to be falling perfectly into place. They even recently found out that Bernee, a restaurant from their Los Feliz days, had just opened a location in Altadena as well.
“It was becoming like the perfect version that we always envision for this neighborhood,” Keiser said.
But that vision came to an abrupt end on a day that started like any other. When the fire roared in, everything changed. With flames rapidly approaching, there was no time to gather belongings. Bayouth grabbed her engagement ring, Keiser snatched his favorite coffee grinder, and after warning their 19-year-old neighbor to evacuate, they fled to safety at a relative’s home in Woodland Hills.
“Things got really bad because we just had a little one, and we didn’t want to take the time to pack up,” Keiser said. “I mean, we’ve lost everything, except for a handful of ceramics, the clothes on our back, and my work computer, which I just need for my livelihood.”
Husband and wife Tommy Keiser and Chelsea Bayouth show a picture of what their home looked like before being destroyed along East Harriet St. during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)
Among the few items saved were ceramic pieces Bayouth had crafted herself, including a cup and saucer set that her daughter had used. Standing near the crumbling remnants of the red-brick chimney — the only part of their home still standing — Bayouth and Keiser reflected on what they had lost, and what, in small fragments, they had managed to hold onto.
“We’re just trying to gather anything that will give us a memory of this place, because we had to leave so quickly,” Keiser said.
He had no plans of returning anytime soon. It would take at least five years for it to be somewhat habitable again, Keiser said. For now, their focus is on moving forward and finding a new home.
Chelsea Bayouth holds a few of her 3 year-old daughters dishes that survived after the home her and husband Tommy Keiser (not pictured) had been living in for four years was destroyed along East Harriet St. during the Eaton Fire in Altadena on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)
“I think I just need to move on and find a new place to live,” Keiser said. “And also, I think I’m going to live in a place that has a little less vegetation.”
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